Cookbook recounts 84 years of Ox Yoke Inn

AMANA — Having served food family style for 84 years, Ox Yoke Inn in Amana is releasing a cookbook to share its story through its many recipes.

The first ever Ox Yoke Inn cookbook includes 67 recipes, from meat dishes, such as pickled ham, to desserts, such as rhubarb meringue pie, owner Bill Leichsenring said in the Amana Society Bulletin last week.

“Our Recipes, Our Story” was written by Emilie Hoppe, according to the Bulletin, and the book is illustrated with current and historical photos and illustrations.

Mingled throughout the recipes are stories about William and Lina Leichsenring, stories of Amana and its past and the changes Amana has seen.

According to the Bulletin article, William and Lina grew up in communal Amana. William and his cousin Henry left to play baseball and see the world. They landed in Wisconsin.

William worked at Phoenix Hosiery Company during the day and at Wisconsin Roof Garden, a dance hall, at night. Missing Amana kitchen house cooking, William gravitated to the German restaurants in Milwaukee where he became friends with the restaurant’s owners, the Maders and Karl Ratzsch.

William began to desire having a restaurant of his own. He returned to Amana, married Lina in 1932, and they opened Ox Yoke Inn.

“Our Recipes, Our Story” is available for purchase at the Ox Yoke Inn.